IKEA halts moose lasagne sales after pork traces found

STOCKHOLM – Furniture retailer IKEA said on Saturday it had halted sales of moose lasagne after traces of pork were found in a batch of the product.

Sales of the lasagne, of which about 10,000 tonnes has been produced by a Swedish supplier for IKEA, were stopped at its stores in 18 countries across Europe after tests by Belgian authorities late last month revealed traces of pork.

"We received confirmation on Friday that one production series contained minced pork in very small quantity, roughly 1 percent," IKEA spokeswoman Tina Kardum said, adding that the tainted series totaled just over 17,000 packages.

"Due to this, we are now in dialogue with our supplier, which has taken steps to make sure this does not happen again."

In February IKEA halted sales of its trade-mark meatballs after tests showed a batch contained horsemeat, a discovery that widened a Europe-wide horsemeat scandal that has damaged confidence in the continent's food industry.